The Blarney Stone
by D.K. Rhoswen
Summary: Kissing the blarney stone has its benefits...march challenge fic


**A/N: This for the Year of the Ship March challenge, themed "Lucky." This is an attempt to be much lighter in mood than my other stories, so if it gets a little OOC my apologies. Only other detail is that Nikola's still a vampire. Hope you all like it =]**

"Nikola what on Earth are you doing!?"

Helen had turned around to shine her flashlight on Nikola laying down, bending backwards, his lips to the stone without his hands on rails. As the wind picked up and thunder tumbled above, Nikola elegantly extricated himself from the precarious position, that cheeky grin in his eyes.

"Don't act like you're not impressed Helen."

Although she was impressed, Helen scoffed and rolled her eyes then said,

"Nikola we are not here for you to show off…"

"I know and yet I managed to do so anyway. You should be doubly impressed."

"…we are here to see if the Leprechauns are still around since the last sighting."

Nikola sighed heavily as he carefully wiped his hands on his kerchief while Helen attempted to not stare and imagine the wonders those hands could work.

"When in Rome Helen, do as the Romans do. We are at the Blarney Stone, how could I not kiss it?"

"We are not _tourists_."

"That is apparent as we are here in the dark of night, and I do mean dark of night since those lovely storm clouds have insisted on covering the crescent moon that's suppose to be out tonight."

"Yes well, shall we press on?"

Nikola gracefully extended one lithe arm before him and smiled,

"Radiant beauty and perfect brains before brains and brawn."

Helen was suddenly thankful for the cover of night as to hide the slight red tinge that arose to her cheeks, after a hundred years Nikola's compliments could still make her face flush and heart flutter like no other man could. The smirk covering Nikola's face made her pretty sure he knew it and could see her blush, damn his vampiric eyesight. Ducking her head slightly, she simply smiled a little and walked past Nikola to leave the castle and begin searching the grounds. As she brushed pass, Nikola leaned forward imperceptibly to better smell the heaven that was Helen's scent before following her.

Thunder again tumbled and rolled in somersaults in the sky as the pair quickly descended the stairs in the castle and began prowling the grounds for any sign of the elusive leprechauns. The recent sightings had been too frequent for Helen's liking so, after all these years of leaving the creatures to their own seemingly capable devices, she decided it was time to make contact with them. At that moment Helen got a call from Henry who was watching the satellite imagery to see if it could point them in the right direction. Unfortunately, the cloud cover was hampering Henry's efforts so Helen and Nikola had to press on and hope they stumbled upon something. They traversed much ground and, while searching an open field, were both thinking they might get lucky and the storm would hold for another two hours until dawn.

But then Nikola tense up just a head of Helen.

"What is it Nikola?" Helen breathed quietly, "Did you see something?"

"No," Nikola said slowly, "but I feel something."

"What?" Helen was completely confused.

Nikola only turned his head, a mysterious gleam in eyes, and smiled,

"Watch the sky."

Helen gave Nikola her, "what are you up to now?" look but said nothing and turned her gaze upward. Seconds later everything was illuminated as a large crack of lightning scrambled across the sky. Nikola had not removed his gaze from Helen and inhaled sharply as when the lightning flashed her features were sharply accentuated, especially the wickedly delighted grin on her lips. He stepped closer to her, watching her watch another bolt of lightning streak down to the ground on the far side of some trees, feeling his own electric current quivering stronger within him.

"I have always enjoyed watching thunderstorms" She murmured, "There is just something so fascinating about lightning…"

"Mmm, I was born in a storm like this you know," Helen nodded to him, and he knew she had not failed to notice how little space was now between, "perhaps that is why you find me so fascinating…" he whispered near her ear.

She turned her head slightly, bringing their lips barely inches apart. Helen could not only feel her heart rate increase, embarrassingly so since she knew Nikola could undoubtedly hear it, but also the tingle of electricity growing stronger in him. It caused an odd and enticing aura to spiral about him, and combined with the smiling lips and yearning in his eyes Helen allowed herself to be drawn forward.

And then the rain literally started falling in buckets. Without missing a beat Nikola grabbed Helens hand and the two of them sprinted for the tree line. It was a futile attempt to stay dry because in the time it took them to reach the tree's and duck beneath one they were already completely soaked. Helen rested her back on the trunk of the tree, looked herself over sighing and then looked at Nikola. She couldn't help herself. She laughed at the sight of him. He looked peeved in the most adorable way with his hands on his hips in an exasperated fashion and his normally spiked hair melted to his head with one strand falling across his forehead.

"I'm glad you are so amused at our current predicament." Nikola said to Helen in a snarky tone, but the grin in his eyes gave away his true feelings, as they always did. "We should head back. I don't want you catching cold."

He took her hand again and began leading the way back towards their car. It was much quicker going back since they did not have to pay close attention to the ground for sings of the leprechauns. Nonetheless Nikola kept the pace reasonable and constantly looked back at Helen through the sheets of rain that were cascading down all around them to make sure she was still alright. They were almost there, they just had to cross one empty field, but Nikola again stopped in his tracks.

"Wait…" he murmured.

Helen felt Nikola's hand slip from her own but not before she felt the twinge of electricity spark to life. He walked away from her, into the field, and stood looking upwards. Helen waited for him to say something, tell her that she could follow him now. But that did not happen. Instead a split second later lightning ripped from the sky and struck the ground not far from where Nikola was. He was brilliantly illuminated and Helen cried out his name in fear. But as she did so she saw him raise one arm and saw part of the lightning bolt dance into his outstretched hand to wrap itself up his arm, down his torso around his legs before disappearing.

"Alright, let's press on." Nikola called back to Helen.

"Press on?!" Helen shouted going to him, furious, "That was completely reckless…!"

"And quite impressive, admit it."

Helen rolled her eyes at him again,

"You are so infuriating!"

"And yet you choose to keep me around and go alone with me on missions in the dark of night," Nikola stepped closer to her, shaking his head at her, a playfully scolding tone coming to his voice, "you sure do know how to send a man mixed messages."

"_I _know how to send mixed message?! HA!" Helen laughed his face saying, "This coming from the man who tells me he loves me and then threatens to kill me. That is a mixed message."

Helen had meant her comment in jest but Nikola's teasing expression faltered, fell and grew serious. He took hold of Helens hands, and Helen shudder at the touch as the electricity was that was still coursing through his veins slipped from him to her.

"I would never hurt you. I do love you."

The unguarded expression Helen had seen in Rome was once more in Nikola's eyes and she realized that he meant it as much as she did. And she tried to tell him, but the look faded quickly and the cocky snarky mask Nikola always wore returned as she parted her lips and he said,

"Now we must hurry before the lightning comes back to play."

Turning he started off again in the direction of the car, trying to let go of Helen's hands but found as he began walking that she only let go of one. He smiled to the darkness ahead of him.

They soon reached the car and Helen jumped into the driver's seat and Nikola squelched into the passenger seat. Helen drove as fast as she dared in the blinding rain back to the cottage they were renting during their search for the leprechauns. Helen had had the heat blasting in the car but she was still shivering when they reached the cottage. Turning off the engine they both leapt out and made a mad dash for the door, Helen fumbled with the keys and quickly had the door open.

Helen went over to the table by the tiny stove and placed her gun, the keys, ruined cell fone and a few other nondescript items on it. As she finished she suddenly felt the heat from and heard the crackle of a fire at her back. Turning she found Nikola standing beside the fireplace and looking rather pleased at his accomplishment of the roaring fire.

"Sorry Nikola but you are not the first person to discover fire," she teased him, going to stand next to him.

Nikola turned his head to make a witty retort but stopped when he saw Helen was holding herself tightly and shivering. Instead of replying he just walked off, into her room. Not a clue what he was up to, but not wanting to leave the warmth of the fire Helen just waited for him to come back. When he did she was surprised to see him holding a clean, dry, pair of her clothes.

"You change here," He told her; she did not fail to miss the concern in his eyes, "you need the fire more than I do."

Helen thanked him quietly as he strolled off into his own room. She quickly rid herself of her soaked garments carelessly to the floor and donned the dry ones. Helen still felt rather cold, and hugged herself tightly. She had just placed another log on the already roaring fire when she heard the soft pad of footsteps. Helen turned to find Nikola standing beside her, also changed, and before she could say anything he had wrapped her tightly in a blanket.

"Better?" He asked her gently.

She made no reply but only reached her arms out from the blanket and wrapped them around him, pulling Nikola tightly to her snuggling into him for every last ounce of warmth he could offer. Nikola was shocked at her actions but did not hesitate to encircle her with arms, holding her tightly, resting his head on hers.

"Yes." She sighed into him, listening to the way his heart beat was increasing.

They remained like this for a long while. Neither speaking, neither moving, each just feeling the way they breathed in sync and loving the way holding the other felt so right. The fire was beginning to sputter out when Helen whispered,

"I love you Nikola."

She heard the beat his heart skipped. He pulled back from their embrace, leaving one hand on Helen's hip while the other slipped to cup her face. His eyes peering into hers for the answer he was about to ask. Helen knew what he was going to ask and decided to just answer him. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. Nikola was quick to reciprocate, both eager to taste more of the other, and soon Helen felt electricity tingling all over body. She moaned heavily at the delicious feel of this and Nikola was helpless to control the quiver of electricity that jolted them both. This, and the need to breathe, caused them to relinquish their hold on the others mouth. There was a mischievous twinkle in Helen's eyes that Nikola was quite sure he did not recognize. A second later she took his hand and walked backwards into her bedroom with him asking in velvety tone,

"I need to stay warm so I don't get sick, think you can handle that?"

The next morning over a cup of tea, Helen called Will on the back up phone she had left in the cottage the night before. She had it on speaker phone, on the table so she could enjoy her cup of tea. Nikola was seated across from her sipping on his own cup and listening in as the protégé had just picked up.

"So did you two get lucky and find the leprechauns on the first try?" Will asked.

"We got lucky alright." Nikola quipped.

Helen stifled a laugh as Will said,

"What?"

"No Will we did not find any leprechauns. We only managed to get caught in a rather refreshing thunderstorm."

"Yeah Henry said there was a storm over you guys. I hope you managed to keep warm after getting soaked."

"Oh we more than managed, quite surprised this place didn't burn to the ground."

Helen failed at stifling a giggle this time but quickly recovered and said,

"Yes Will, we did. Nikola and I are going to try again today, hopefully we'll find something."

"Ok Magnus, check back in later."

Will hung up the phone and looked at Henry who had just walked in.

"Dude, you look like you've seen a ghost. What's up?" Henry asked.

"I just heard Magnus giggle."

"Are you serious?!"

"Yeah. It was a legitimate, giggle."

Henry and Will looked at each other, shocked for a few moments and then it dawned on them what this meant and each sighed heavily.

"I'll go stock up on wine." Will said.

"I'll go warn Big Guy and the other residents that Vlad's here to stay." Henry said.

Back the cottage Nikola and Helen were walking out to the car.

"You know you should really think about kissing that stone this time," Nikola told Helen.

"Oh I should?" She replied.

"Absolutely. I kissed it and look what happened. The most amazing woman admitted she loves me. "

"Well I don't really need too." Helen informed him.

They were seated in the car by this time and Nikola turned to look at her.

"Oh you don't?"

"No," she shook her head and smiled, "I already have you, what else could I need?"

She gave him a kiss on the cheek and then started car, backed out the driveway and was some ways down the road when Nikola replied.

"Wine."

"What?"

"You should kiss the stone and hope you find a way to meet my needs as far as wine goes."

"Hmm. Maybe I should." Helen agreed in a bemused tone.

They drove in a comfortable silence for a little ways more when Helen said,

"Ego."

"What?"

"I think I'm going to kiss the stone and hope that I find a way to fit your ego in the Sanctuary…"

"Me? Ego?" Nikola feigned shock, "I do not know what you're talking about Helen…"

"Right." Helen laughed, "This coming from the man who insists on playing with lightning to impress me."

"See. I knew you would be impressed with that." Nikola smirked.

Helen rolled her eyes,

"So infuriating."


End file.
